Vapers Beware: Hackers Are Coming After Your E-Cig

Okay, you know that if you quit smoking, that’s a good thing. And the craze with electronic cigarettes is supposed to be a tool that helps you do that, another good thing. But did you know that there is danger in your e-cig, other than some health concerns that have been presented? Electronic cigarettes could lead to your computer being hacked. And from there, it’s just a click here and there into your bank account, credit cards, and more.

Your Vaporizer May Be A Code Modifier

The trust in technology seems to always be on the border of, well, untrustworthy. With global attacks announced what seems to be almost daily, the fact that we rely on our computers so much, it is scary out there in the cyberworld.

Most electronic cigarettes are charged by the USB port on user’s computers. With a tweak here and a tweak there, the vaporizer can become a weapon and download numerous malicious payloads off internet. There was concerns like this when iPods were all the rage, which downloaded iTunes off the internet. A user could download iTunes from various websites, some which could have malware and viruses that would transfer to the iPod via the computer.

And so, in a world where everything is connected can leave us with ramifications from staggering cybersecurity. Any security expert or strategist will tell you that that IoT is essentially broken. And while there is an eagerness for developers and manufacturers to release their new devices, they unfortunately overlook security issues. If the security in the IoT is to ever improve, a key requirement is to establish and follow interoperable open standards according to most experts, even small devices such as electronic cigarettes.

Electronic Cigarettes Are Nothing More Than an USB Device

Demonstrations recently have proven how a vaporizer is more than an alternative to traditional cigarettes. And while this discovery is amusing, it is also problematic because it proved that smokeless alternative device operates much like any USB device – which can be hacked.

Yes, even your e-cig can used by a hacker to pass codes off to your computer and give it commands. While computers are ‘smart’, they must be told what they know, meaning, the hacker can tell your computer to collect your personal data and leave a calling card behind, otherwise known as a virus.

Your Saving Grace – Little Memory

Fortunately, electronic cigarettes do not have a lot of memory, and as such, code that is too complex isn’t going to make it through to your computer. In addition, to beef up cyber security, most enterprises block using USB ports, prevent attacks like Wannacry. But regardless, vapers need to be cautious. While you may be doing your body a good thing by switching from traditional cigarettes, you could be putting your computer at risk.